Tarun Tejpal, the founder-editor of Tehelka magazine has been acquitted of sexual harassment charges by the Goa Sessions Court. He was accused of sexually assaulting a female colleague in 2013 on the sidelines of a conference at a five-star hotel in Goa.
The Goa session court was to deliver its verdict on May 19 but could not, due to "power failure" after Cyclone Tauktae. At Tejpal's request, the case was heard in a closed room. The Goa Police was favored by Special Public Prosecutor Francisco Tavora in this case.
The court was scheduled to pronounce the verdict on April 27 in the rape case against Tejpal, but the decision was adjourned till May 12 by Judge Kshama Joshi. Then on 12 May, the decision was deferred till 19 May. The court said that there is a shortage of staff due to the Coronavirus epidemic, hence the decision is being deferred.
In 2013, a young woman who worked with Tejpal accused him of sexual assault in a lift of a five-star hotel in Goa. He was arrested on 30 November 2013. Earlier, he had also appealed for anticipatory bail, but the court refused to grant him any relief. Tejpal has been out on bail since May 2014.
On November 22 in 2013, Goa Police lodged a suo motu FIR against Tejpal. He was arrested on November 30 after his anticipatory bail plea was rejected. However, he was granted interim bail on May 19, 2014, to attend the cremation of his mother.
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